Youth Development

Preparing Young People

The future of our communities depends on how well we prepare our young people to meet the challenges of tomorrow. Their development requires an investment of time, energy and resources today. MetLife Foundation is committed to a youth development program that calls on after school, healthy lifestyles, mentoring and arts education initiatives to see young people are prepared academically, socially and physically to lead us forward.

Sesame Workshop's Healthy Teeth, Healthy Me initiative
Promotes the importance of children's oral health. The multimedia awareness effort aimed at preschoolers and their parents emphasizes everyday routines and good habits to fight tooth decay. Tool kits featuring games, songs and videos help spread the message, with information in English and Spanish.
> See website

MetLife Foundation Entrepreneurial Awards
Honor and promote outstanding entrepreneurship and innovations developed by Junior Achievement operations around the world. Winners receive grants of $25,000 to continue work on their projects. The awards program is in its 11th year.

MetLife Foundation Afterschool Innovator program
Awards exceptional after-school programs serving middle school students and spotlights promising practices within the field through a series of issue briefs, articles and workshops. The program, now in its fifth year, focuses on a different set of topics annually.
> See website

Zero to Three
Promotes the health and development of infants and toddlers through the "Little Kids, Big Questions" program. The 12-podcast series, available in both English and Spanish, translates the research of early childhood development into practices that parents and other caregivers can tailor to the needs of their own children and family.
> Download podcasts

More Programs

Big Brothers Big Sisters Hispanic Mentoring Program:
Works to engage and sustain the involvement of greater numbers of Latino children, families and volunteers in Big Brothers Big Sisters' proven mentoring program. MetLife Foundation is supporting the program in 20 cities.

City Year's After-School Heroes program:
Guides middle school students in activities that encourage civic participation and leadership development. With the support of MetLife Foundation, City Year has expanded the reach of After-School Heroes to 10 City Year locations and 40 schools.

Jumpstart's "Reading for Generations: A Guide for Grandparents":
Informs grandparents about the importance of early literacy for preschool children and helps them with their unique role in the lives of their grandchildren. The free booklet is available for download in English and Spanish.
> Download booklet in English> Download booklet in Spanish

Partnership for a Drug-free America's 2011 Partnership Attitude Tracking Survey (PATS):
Reveals teen marijuana use is on the rise, with abuse of prescription drug an additional concern. The 23rd annual study of 10- to 19-year-olds also shows more than half of Hispanic teens (54%) report having used illicit drugs in the past year compared to Caucasian (39%) and African American (42%) teens.
> Download report

American Academy of Family Physicians' Americans In Motion-Healthy Interventions (AIM-HI) initiative:
Helps doctors work with families to address childhood obesity in local communities through an emphasis on physical activity, nutrition and emotional well-being. MetLife Foundation grants are awarded to family medicine residency programs across the country integrating AIM-HI projects.

MetLife Learning for Life initiative:
Focuses on integrating arts across the school curriculum to foster creativity and critical thinking in young people. The initiative is being implemented in partnership with the Young Audiences Arts for Learning nonprofit network in 15 cities across the country and focuses on students in grades 4 through 8.